Belleville astronaut Sandy Magnus with residents at the Benedictine Living Community before her April 17 visit (Submitted). By David Wilhelm Messenger Editor Sr. Barb Biver remembers the time several years ago when an Elvis Presley impersonator came to entertain residents at the Benedictine Living Community at the Shrine of Our […]
Dominic Grzegorek, of Ashley, regularly prays at the grotto (right) for the Blessed Mother Mary that was built on his property by Nashville mason Dave Schuette. “It’s a way of honoring her and showing respect for her, and it turned out really good,” Grzegorek said (Submitted). By Linda Norris Messenger […]
Raphael H. “Rafe” Middeke, 92, of Trenton, formerly of Damiansville, died at 6:25 a.m. Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at Aviston Countryside Manor. He was born June 21, 1933, in rural Clinton County, a son of the late Bernard and Mary (nee Hellmann) Middeke. After attending St. Rose Elementary School, Rafe […]
A U.S. Army detachment from Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri carries the remains of World War II veteran Edgar William “Billy” Nevois to his final resting place at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in Prairie du Rocher. At left, Illinois Patriot Guard Riders hold flags and salute Nevois, who died in […]
Approximately 15 to 18 parishioners volunteer their time, serving about 50 people who come to the window adjacent to the garage attached to the parish rectory each week. On a typical Friday morning, Clete Blaes makes conversation with a Belleville resident seeking groceries to feed her family.
About 400 people were in attendance for St. Clare’s open house, Sunday, Aug. 13. The open house was held in conjunction with the Feast of St. Clare of Assisi and featured tours of the parish’s 10-year-old church, the ancient fossil stone altar and baptism font, Turkish iconography of Christ’s passion and hand-blown glass windows of creation, as well as several prayer spaces. Tour guides explained the meaning of Catholic architecture in the church.
The idea for the Our Holy Innocents Project came to Richard Jordan one day in 2010 when he was visiting his wife Linda’s grave in Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Belleville.
